Diamond Ace's Passionate Swing

Seido's cheerleading squad went completely wild!

"Great! Three strikeouts in three straight!"

"Lin Xiao! You're amazing! You're amazing!"

"Such a brilliant start! Speechless!"

A satisfied smile played on Takashima Rei's lips.

"In this way, we have regained control of the game."

Gasps of amazement rose and fell from the audience.

"Really?! This guy..."

"Strikeouts right off the bat! He's a monster..."

In the Daocheng rest area, ace pitcher Narumiya Mei's expression was extremely unpleasant.

Seeing that his team's center batting lineup hadn't even reached the bases, his face was so gloomy it was almost dripping with water.

The catcher next to him, Tadano Itsuki, secretly glanced at him.

That same expression again…

The atmosphere at the Seido rest area is completely different.

"I just came off the field," said Kominato Haruichi with a smile.

"Lin Xiao played exceptionally well today; Sawamura, you and Furuya probably won't get a chance to play!"

Sawamura immediately retorted.

"No, no, no! Lin Xiao's stamina will definitely run out if he throws towards the back!"

"In the end, we'll still have to rely on our ace reserve!"

Satoru Furuya, standing next to him, nodded in agreement, though his expression remained unchanged.

"Bang!"

Unable to bear it any longer, Izashiki kicked Sawamura in the butt.

"You can shut your mouth now!"

"Ouch! Senior, you're hitting me too hard!"

Sawamura clutched his buttocks, grimacing.

Izashiki ignored him and turned to pat Lin Xiao on the shoulder.

"However, Lin Xiao, you're getting more and more skilled at throwing the forkball."

Lin Xiao immediately puffed out his chest, looking proud.

"Then don't you ever think about who gets up earlier than the chickens and goes to bed later than the dogs, feeding you balls every day and using you as practice targets?"

"To be honest, if I hadn't seen our team's amazing lineup, I would have suspected that the school couldn't afford a ball machine and was just exploiting me as their laborer!"

"You brat! This is giving you a valuable opportunity for real-world practice!"

Everyone else laughed somewhat embarrassedly, but only Isashiki, with his thick skin, shouted confidently.

"Hmph! Now let's see what other tricks Narumiya Mei has up his sleeve!"

Lin Xiao was full of confidence.

"Anyway, my strength is not just empty talk."

Miyuki reminded.

"Next up is our attack! All three batters coming off the field are first-year students!"

Sawamura looked righteous, as if the kick he had just received had never happened.

"It's up to you first-years! Outshine all those annoying seniors!"

Kuramochi's forehead veins bulged as he instantly appeared behind Sawamura.

"I think you're asking for trouble again!"

"Try my chokehold technique!"

"Ah! I surrender! I surrender, okay, Kuramochi-senpai!"

Lin Xiao ignored the commotion and gave a thumbs-up to Kominato Haruichi, who was about to take the stage.

"Good luck, little brother!"

Kominato Haruichi was a little shy, but still nodded vigorously.

"Um…"

On the pitcher's mound, Narumiya Mei watched Kominato Haruichi walk into the batter's box, his brows furrowing even more.

"There are so many first-graders! It's annoying!"

Catcher Masatoshi Harada noticed his emotional fluctuation and whispered a reminder.

"Stop acting like a child, Ming, tone it down."

Narumiya Mei gave an impatient "humph".

The sliders continuously chased down two good shots.

On the third ball, Narumiya Mei threw a tricky inside corner kick.

Haruichi Kominato accurately tracked the trajectory and swung the bat!

"Ping!"

The ball has been hit!

However, Inami's shortstop, Katsuyuki Shirakawa, reacted extremely quickly, making a beautiful diving tackle that nearly allowed Haruichi Kominato to get a hit.

The ball was smoothly passed to first base.

"Out!"

Kominato Haruichi ran back to the rest area in frustration.

"So close...what a pity!"

Lin Xiao patted him on the shoulder, comforting him.

"It's alright, it's only the first meal!"

"Furuya, it's up to you now."

Furuya Akira, radiating heat, nodded blankly.

"Um."

The broadcast started.

"Ninth batter, pitcher, Furuya-kun."

Narumiya Mei looked at the expressionless first-year pitcher in the batter's box, a playful smile playing on his lips.

"Alright, here comes another first-grader."

"What kind of method would scare you...?"

"At the Seido rest area," Sawamura shouted.

"Furuya! Stop thinking so much! Just stay true to your idiotic nature!"

Kominato Haruichi, standing nearby, looked speechless.

"Sawamura-kun... what kind of suggestion was that...?"

Sawamura spoke with righteous indignation.

"If you become an idiot, you might just hit the target!"

Without further hesitation, Cheng Gongming raised his hand and swung his arm!

"Take this, kid! A fast, diagonal straight shot!"

Furuya Akira remained expressionless, seemingly unaffected by external disturbances, and simply swung the bat instinctively.

"Ping!"

The bat grazed the baseball!

Referee: "Out of bounds!"

A collective sigh of regret rippled through the audience.

"What a pity!"

"But you played well! You were able to keep up with Narumiya Mei's ball speed!"

Narumiya Mei curled her lip, her expression somewhat sour.

"cut!"

Furuya Akira adjusted his hat, his eyes behind his glasses completely expressionless.

"The bat was thrown a little too early."

Narumiya Mei shouted impatiently at the catcher Harada.

"ball!"

Masatoshi Harada threw the ball back, unable to help but mutter a complaint under his breath.

"You just shot that ball right in the middle! What are you trying to do, idiot?!"

"Stop nagging! Give me the ball!"

Narumiya Mei shouted impatiently.

"asshole…"

Harada Masatoshi cursed under his breath.

In the press box.

Taiwada, the reporter, adjusted his glasses.

"Narimiya-kun, are you still not fully in the zone, just like in the first game?"

"His emotions seem a bit unstable right now, and Seido probably wants to take advantage of this opportunity to score more points."

The reporter next to him, Fujio, nodded in agreement.

"Yes, after conceding the first point, we lost control of the ball due to impulsiveness..."

"This was indeed Narumiya Mei's most frequent problem up until last year."

""call out!""

""boom!""

Narumiya Mei threw two powerful inside shots in a row, creating a strong sense of pressure.

Then, the fourth goal! Outside the corner!

""call out!""

""boom!""

Satoru Furuya seized the opportunity and swung his bat again!

This time, he caught it!

"Ping!"

The baseball was hit far away!

A hint of annoyance flashed in Furuya Akira's eyes.

"Damn it! It didn't shoot far enough!"

Narumi immediately shouted.

"A-Yi!"

Second baseman Tsubasa Hirai moved swiftly and caught the falling baseball steadily in his glove.

"Snapped!"

Referee: "Out!"

Cheers erupted in the rice field rest area.

"Great! Perfect defense!"

"Well done, Narimiya!"

Fujio, a reporter, analyzed.

"The alternation of sharp inside and outside pitches, along with breaking balls to make the most of fastballs... Narumiya Mei's pitching strategy is starting to become clear."

Furuya Akira walked down from the batter's box, glanced at Narumiya Mei on the pitcher's mound, and then at Lin Xiao in the dugout.

"Such a tough pitcher to deal with..."

"How did Lin Xiao manage to get a hit in the first inning and score four runs in one go?"